Khirbet Abu Samara

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Khirbet Abu Samara, also known as Horvat Shmarya, is an archaeological site in Israel’s northwestern Negev. It sits between Mishmar HaNegev and Highway 25, on the northern bank of Wadi Abu Samara where springs emerge.

What’s at the site
- Underground structures that may date to the Chalcolithic period.
- Remains of a Byzantine settlement, including marble columns and parts of a large public building that could have been a church.
- Caves, water cisterns, coins and pottery from various eras.
- A Muslim cemetery where Bedouin saint Nabi Samara is said to be buried.

History and setting
- The area features chalk outcrops from the Beit Guvrin Formation with water cisterns, near where kurkar (calcareous sandstone) meets chalk.
- Today the site is an open area surrounded by fields, with herbaceous vegetation and many reptiles.
- In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, a Bedouin settlement lived here during the British Mandate and was evacuated in 1951 after the founding of the State of Israel. A railway line (Rafah–Beersheba) built in 1917–1927 passed nearby.

Looting and preservation
- The site has suffered extensive looting. Arrests were made in 2013 (three looters) and 2017 (five looters), all from Rahat.
- Looting pits increased over time: 12 found in 2022 and more than 90 by 2025.
- The Israel Antiquities Authority conducted a community excavation in July 2025 with the Bnei Shimon Regional Council, drawing about 400 volunteers from local kibbutzim.

Size and protection status
- Archaeological remains cover about 225 dunams. The protected area was expanded from about 1,400 dunams to roughly 5,000 dunams by 2025.